A Boulder man who was convicted of felony theft in connection with a downtown real estate deal will be able to keep his new job with a development firm, a Boulder District Court judge ruled Thursday.

Judge Thomas Mulvahill ruled that Mark Young can keep his adviser job at rVenture2, a real estate development firm involved in two small projects in Boulder.

The Boulder County District Attorney's Office had asked that Mulvahill review the probation department's decision to allow Young to accept the job because the terms of his probation for economic crimes put numerous restrictions on his work and financial activities.

Young, 52, was sentenced to two years of work release and six years of probation in 2011 after being found guilty of stealing $51,000 from longtime friend and business partner Rudy Harburg. Harburg gave Young the money as part of a project to develop 720 Pearl St.

Prosecutors said Young did not need the money as collateral, as he had claimed, and moved the money into a separate account for his own benefit. Young insists he lost the money in the general collapse of the real estate market. Young is appealing his conviction, and the work-release sentence was stayed pending the appeal.

Young cleared his employment with the probation department, which gave its approval in April 2012.

The contract with rVenture2 and its parent company, Urban Green Development, describes his duties as assisting with the coordination and administration of the companies' "involvement and investment in real estate development," "interfacing" with project management, identifying properties for acquisition, keeping projects on deadline and leading the team that meets development criteria for municipalities.

Under the terms of Young's probation, he cannot enter into, participate in or benefit from any real estate transactions. He cannot have access to or control assets or funds of groups or individuals. He cannot manage groups, trusts or legal entities, and he cannot act as a fiduciary for a group, person or trust. He cannot even open a new bank account without talking to his probation officer.

Prosecutors argued that the probation department erred in allowing Young to take the job, while Lindasue Smollen, Young's defense attorney, said he had been very careful to be completely transparent.

Young's employer submitted an affidavit describing his value to the company and saying the company would be willing to adjust the terms of his employment to keep Young on board.

In the ruling issued Thursday, Mulvahill noted that the probation terms themselves give the department the authority to make exemptions to the conditions and that Young's employment allows him to pay his restitution more quickly.

"The defendant's employer is fully aware of the circumstance of the defendant's conviction and probationary sentence and has indicated their willingness to cooperate with probation to ensure that the defendant's employment does not violate the defendant's sentence," Mulvahill wrote. "The court finds that it is entirely reasonable for probation to authorize the defendant's employment with rVenture2."

Smollen previously said prosecutors intervened in the matter because they were still upset that Young did not get a prison sentence.

On Thursday, she said the ruling was "simply the right thing" and "hardly a victory."

Prosecutors are expected to file their response to Young's appeal this month.

Boulder County District Attorney Stan Garnett said the judge's ruling provided necessary clarification.

"There was some confusion about what the terms of probation meant," Garnett said. "We needed some clarification, and Judge Mulvahill provided that."

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